Jays blow lead, Rivera ties record

New York Yankees Alex Rodriguez celebrates his 3 run homer in top of the 6th inning putting the Yankees within 1 run of tying the game, Saturday, September 17, 2011 against the Toronto Blue Jays. (Mark O'Neill/QMI Agency)

Latest News

KEN FIDLIN, QMI Agency

The New york Yankees rallied from five runs down to beat the Toronto Blue Jays Saturday as iconic Yankee closer Mariano Rivera tied Trevor Hoffman for the all-time saves lead at 601.

Curtis Granderson’s 40th a home run, a two-run shut in the seventh inning, provided the Yankees with their margin of victory.

The Yanks trailed 6-1 after four innings but scored four in the sixth and took the lead in the seventh.

Rivera came on for a a one-two-three ninth for his 42nd save of the season.

The Jays jumped on starter Bartolo Colon for four runs in the second inning, sending eight men to the plate. Lind singled to lead off and went to third on David Cooper’s single. Lind scored on Colby Rasmus’s double to right and Cooper scored on a groundout by Brett Lawrie.

Adam Loewen walked and Jose Molina cashed another run on a groundrule double to left.

Mike McCoy made it 4-0, scoring Loewen on a sacrifice bunt on the first-base side.

The Yankees scored a run and threatened to strike for more in the fourth but an outstanding running catch deep in right-centre by Colby Rasmus, coupled with some bad Yankee base-running, intervened.

With runners on second and third after a Granderson walk and a Teixeira double, Toronto leftielder Adam Loewen dropped a catchable flyball off Cano’s bat, scoring a run and putting runners at second and third.

Alex Rodriguez's groundout to third failed to move the runners and then Nick Swisher smoked a ball toward the gap in right-centre. Colby Rasmus tracked it down and made an outstanding catch.

Meanwhile, Teixeira scrambled back to the bag, attempting to tag up and advance, but Cano, oblivious that the ball had been caught, passed Teixeira at third base to retire the side.

After that gift, the Jays tacked on two more runs in the bottom of the fourth on a Mike McCoy double that cashed Rasmus and Lawrie ahead of him.

Down 6-1, the Yanks responded with four runs in the sixth. Rodriguez, making his first start in a week because of a sore thumb, keyed the uprising with a three-run homer, his 16th of this injury-plagued season.

The Yanks came right back to take the lead in the seventh on Granderson’s 40th home run of the season, a two-run shot that scored Jeter ahead of him.